The International Trade Commission has issued a final report in connection with its investigation of proposed 2012 WCO-recommended modifications to the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the U.S., pursuant to section 1205 of the Omnibus Trade and Competitiveness Act of 19881. This is Part 4 of a series of summaries of these proposed modifications, and covers changes to Chapters 16-24.
Harmonized Tariff Schedule
The Harmonized Tariff Schedule (HTS) is a reference manual that provides duty rates for almost every item that exists. It is a system of classifying and taxing all goods imported into the United States. The HTS is based on the international Harmonized System, which is a global standard for naming and describing trade products, and consists of a hierarchical structure that assigns a specific code and rate to each type of merchandise for duty, quota, and statistical purposes. The HTS was made effective on January 1, 1989, replacing the former Tariff Schedules of the United States. It is maintained by the U.S. International Trade Commission, but the Customs and Border Protection of the Department of Homeland Security is responsible for interpreting and enforcing the HTS.
The International Trade Commission has issued a final report in connection with its investigation of proposed 2012 WCO-recommended modifications to the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the U.S., pursuant to section 1205 of the Omnibus Trade and Competitiveness Act of 19881. This is Part 3 of a series of summaries of these proposed modifications, and covers changes to Chapters 6-15.
The International Trade Commission has issued a final report in connection with its investigation of proposed 2012 WCO-recommended modifications to the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the U.S., pursuant to section 1205 of the Omnibus Trade and Competitiveness Act of 19881. This is Part 2 of a series of summaries of these proposed modifications, and covers changes to Chapters 1-5.
The International Trade Commission has issued its final report in connection with its investigation of proposed 2012 WCO-recommended modifications to the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the U.S., pursuant to section 1205 of the Omnibus Trade and Competitiveness Act of 19881.
The International Trade Administration has issued Federal Register notices on its recently initiated antidumping and countervailing duty investigations on high pressure steel cylinders from China (A-570-977 and C-570-978).
The Agricultural Marketing Service is issuing a proposed rule that would amend the Cotton Board Rules and Regulations to increase the supplemental assessment rate, revise the textile trade conversion factors, and greatly expand the number of Harmonized Tariff Schedule (HTS) numbers subject to assessments under the upland Cotton Research and Promotion Order.
On June 1, 2011, Representative Reichert (R) and two co-sponsors1 introduced H.R. 2071, the U.S. OUTDOOR Act, which would eliminate duties on qualifying recreational performance apparel. A similar bill was introduced in the Senate in March.
The International Trade Administration has issued a fact sheet announcing the initiation of antidumping and countervailing duty investigations on imports of high pressure steel cylinders from China.
The Court of International Trade has ruled in Shah Brothers, Inc., v. U.S., that a 2009 amendment to 19 USC 1514 regarding U.S. Customs and Border Protection's tax collection authority over tobacco products, imported gutkha in this case, does not alter CBP's responsibility as the final agency decision-maker, and as a result, jurisdiction is not available under 28 USC 1581(i).
CBP has posted Amendment 1 to the Customs and Trade Automated Interface Requirements document. The following CATAIR chapters and appendices have been revised since the April 2011 version of the CATAIR was released1: